Birthday Ride - Completed!

Hey all - I'm back!

(*actually, I've been back for awhile...technically just came back from a pub where I just saw my Lakers sweep the Nuggets - woo hoo!)

(..but I digress)

Ok, ok...first off, let me just give a BIG thank you to all the well wishers on this momentous day (sarcasm of course...on the latter part, not my 'thank you'). It was actually momentous for me in a sense because this would finally be the year that I kick off doing something adventurous (or crazy) to ring in another year. This idea was actually supposed to start last year on my 30th when I was contemplating running 30-miles (a la Dean)...

..but got invited to spend the day at my friend's beach club at the last minute. Still ended up running 4 though! I know...woo-freakin'-hoo.

There was no question this year however. Fresh from dusting off the ol' road bike and filling it with air, I wanted to take it out on a nice, long proper ride. Needed a destination though. But where? Well, as I stated in the previous post, I haven't gone to visit my father in awhile. Why not bike there?

(uh...because it's over 25+ miles away?) Hell no.

(because temps are hitting the 90's in some areas?) Screw that.

My only regret was not starting earlier. But the only caveat to doing this ride today was that I needed proper rest. After getting up at 9:15am (8.5 hours of sleep), getting coffee at the Bean, a brief stop at Trader Joe's for a banana and snack bars, it was time to pack up my gear and liquids. By the time I was ready to embark, it was just before noon and the sun was in full force.

I started my adventure eastbound on Venice because it has a bike path and was already questioning my decision to leave out the sunblock to lighten the load. After 10-miles or so on the road, I ended up taking a 10-minute break in the shade in front of the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

It was past 12:30pm when I hit the road again and stumbled across a Carl's Jr. All of a sudden, I was craving a Western Bacon Cheeseburger. It took me all of 2 seconds to justify my need for those calories so in I walked, and eat I did.
After about 45 minutes of face stuffing, I continued on via Olympic through downtown. I started to get a sense of deja vu when it hit me that the area I was in was where the latter part of the LA Marathon ran through.

As I was nearing the outskirts of downtown LA where almost everything was in Spanish, I saw a curious gentleman running in my direction on the sidewalk next to me. He stood out a bit because: a) he was running in 90-degree weather (training for Badwater perhaps?), and b) his was the only white face I'd seen in awhile. He surprised me by giving me a wave hello as he passed and I offered up a nod of recognition in return. In short, we were basically saying to one another:

"Hey Crazy!"

"Hey yourself!"

On I moved past downtown where I held out some hope that the route I chose would offer up some diverse scenary. Unfortunately for me, the only 'diversity' I saw was in the form of Latin folks. I passed by more taco trucks and carnicerias in one day than the entire year combined. Not that I don't have mad love para mis hermanos y hermanas de Mexico.

After passing through towns I'd only seen in maps like 'Montebello' and 'Pico Rivera', I finally found myself in Whittier.

The dry heat causes many problems for us Angelenos - the most prominent of which are brush fires. About a mile or two before reaching my father's burial site, I passed by an area smoking and on fire. Thankfully on my way back, I saw that it was mostly contained.

By the time I reached the front gate of Rose Hills Memorial, it was just a hair over the standard length of a marathon, or 26.2 miles for the rest of you.

(hmmm...should I run this next year?) um, HELL no?

One small, minor detail I overlooked was how hilly the park is. Another is the location of his site which is near the very top. In all, rotating between riding and walking (ok, mostly walking) it ended up being another two miles by the time I reached the top. I was drenched in sweat by this point. I allowed myself several minutes in a shade by a nearby tree to collect myself, rehydrate and wonder how in god's name I was going to make it back.

At least the ride down was easy. But I quickly realized that my riding was becoming labored and I was virtually out of liquids. Thankfully, I spotted a market soon thereafter and filled my Camelbak with water and my bike bottle with some Gatorade. It was definitely nice to have something COLD for a change after drinking warm water and Accelerade for most of the ride up.

The ride back was kind of chaotic because I had taken longer than anticipated and started hitting rush hour traffic. The sun was still merciless in the early evening and now, directly in front of me as I rode west. After one more pit stop at a Coffee Bean in downtown for a cold, espresso blended drink, I was ready for the final leg home.

When it was all said and done, it was near 7pm and I had covered almost 60 miles according to the gauge on my bike! I cannot BEGIN to tell you how great that shower was when I got back. I was absolutely spent from spending virtually the entire day battling the sun, the insane temps and dehydration.

But I made it. And tomorrow night, I get to celebrate properly with some friends. But today was certainly one for the books. Time to hit the sack now (it's almost 1:30am!).

Goodnight folks!